Republican Brent Taylor claims victory; Justin Pearson does not concede US House race

Republican Memphis state Sen. Brent Taylor claimed victory in the race for Tennessee’s 9th Congressional District Tuesday, a district that was redrawn months before the election to give Republicans the upper hand.

Taylor narrowly clinched the seat with 111,968 votes (49.63%), about 2,500 votes ahead of Democratic Memphis state Rep. Justin J. Pearson, according to final unofficial counts reported by the Tennessee Secretary of State.

Taylor claimed victory in a social media post just after 11 p.m.

“Thank you Middle and West Tennessee! I won’t let you down!” he wrote.

But Pearson said he will wait for the race to be officially called before conceding. As of 11:55 p.m., the Associated Press had not yet called the race.

“At this point, we want everybody’s ballots to be counted,” he said. Pearson said his campaign has not made a decision on whether they may appeal the results. He will continue to serve as a state Rep. for Memphis if the race does not land in his favor.

“This is probably the most impressive race happening in the United States of America, for the simple fact that it was drawn so nothing near like this could be possible,” Pearson said. “I’m really excited about the fact that we’re going into these counties, we’re making inroads, we’re building relationships and connections that are going to outlast a single campaign. We’ve got a lot more work to do, and I’m just 31, so I’m ready to do it.”

Tennessee’s 9th District used to encompass nearly all of Memphis and had been represented by Democrats for more than 40 years. It was the state’s last Democratic-leaning U.S. House seat after Tennessee’s Republican supermajority split Davidson County into three districts in 2022.

Tennessee Republicans held a special session in May to redraw the 9th District after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a portion of the 1965 Voting Rights Act in Louisiana v. Callais.

The resulting map divided Memphis into three districts, diluting the power of Democratic votes in the majority-Black city. The new L-shaped 9th District stretches from the Memphis airport along the southern edge of rural West Tennessee before reaching up into Middle Tennessee to include part of wealthy Williamson County, typically a Republican stronghold.

Taylor entered the race for the newly drawn district almost immediately and gained endorsements from President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn.

Pearson launched his campaign for the 9th District in October 2025, challenging longtime U.S. Rep. Steven Cohen. Cohen, 77, ended his campaign soon after, refusing to compete for any of the three gerrymandered Memphis seats.

Nonpartisan election forecaster Cook Political Report rated the new 9th District “Solid Republican” with a plus-9 lean. It’s the weakest Republican advantage of the state’s nine congressional districts.

Taylor repeatedly called Pearson a Democratic Socialist, echoing rhetoric embraced by Republicans on the national level. Taylor’s campaign hit a snag the week before the election after the Nashville Scene published a story about allegations that Taylor sent unsolicited nude pictures to someone in 2021. 

Pearson made national headlines after Tennessee’s Republican supermajority expelled him from the Legislature in 2023 for protesting gun violence on the state House floor. The Shelby County Commission quickly reappointed Pearson to his seat. The ouster vaulted him to national prominence and allowed Pearson to raise money from donors throughout the country.